| Celtic Reflections Sculptor
Karin Stanley finds inspiration in nature. Story by Nancy Griffin.
 “At
least a third of the work that’s been bought is used indoors, but
I always design it for outdoors,” said Karin Stanley, whose Celtic
Reflections series was exhibited at the Cairncroft Sculpture Garden
in Dover, Massaschusetts June through October.
Stanley employs stone, steel and other materials in pieces ranging from
one to six feet tall. She finds stones with distinct shapes, colors
and textures, then works the Celtic hieroglyphs and polished steel into
the stone for high contrast.
Her work includes her Celtic Stela series of tall granite sculptures
adorned with Celtic hieroglyphs or letters from the ancient Ogham alphabet
with a vessel for fire in the top.
“The spirit of any place is part of my work. I started making the
stelas in 1997, but I wasn’t ready for a showing until four years
ago,” said Stanley.
She works in four different locations around Boston, one for metal work
and another for stone work, and hunts for stones in various quarries around
New England.
Shanley began her career as a knitwear designer in Ireland because she
was interested in textures, materials, fibers, patterns and symbolism.
She also worked in film, video and theater, styling sets and costumes.
Now her sculpture adorns gardens and homes in Ireland, California, New
Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts. Recently she received two commissions
from Australia. Raised in Dublin County and County Carlow, Stanley has
lived in the U.S. for 19 years. In 2000, she graduated from the landscape
design program at Radcliffe College in Cambridge. She lives in South Natick,
Massachusetts with her husband and two children. She can be contacted
at Irishgardendesign@comcast.net
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